The first question was, who is going to be the “new Simon,” the honestly critical and uncompromising judge of real talent?

While everyone else hemmed and hawed, exec producer Nigel Lythgoe gave an honest answer: “I think Jimmy Iovine will bring a lot of toughness to it. He’s our music czar. He’s going to be our advisor on it, and he’s the type of guy that can stand there, look you in the eyes when he’s heard your CD and throw it in the bin and say, “Not good enough.”

From there it was Iovine’s press show.

“The kids can’t just be told, “Okay, sing better,”” Iovine said. “Someone has to work with them every week on performance, on style, and also make the songs they do have some kind of originality as well. So they’re doing a cover song. That’s one thing, but we’re also going to bring originality to that cover song as well.”

Another questioner asked, “Do you feel it’s a loss not having the Simon character on the program now? “

To which Lythgoe answered, “You obviously haven’t met Jimmy Iovine.”

Will he bring the essential serious criticism to the show? We’ll be the judges of that.

Joanne Ostrow has been watching TV since before "reality" required quotation marks. "Hill Street Blues" was life-changing. If Dickens, Twain or Agatha Christie were alive today, they'd be writing for television. And proud of it.